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Closing Statements by Kaada

Kaada is a man of many talents. Solo artist, collaborator (his work with Mike Patton produced 2004's Romances and 2016's Bacteria Cult) and movie scorer (his film soundtracks have included the French feature La liste de mes envies and indie film Mongoland). He's also made numerous albums with his band Cloroform. He's a busy guy!

Here though he's back with another solo album (his sixth) called Closing Statements which is themed around obituaries and last words. Kaada claims that "it’s been one of the most enjoyable records to make in my life", which might sound quite morbid, but you do get the feeling that these songs are about making the most of our time on this earth rather than the act of death itself. Like with Bacteria Cult, the songs can be sweeping and epic but this time they come with splashes of sentimentality and emotional depth. So where opening track "It Must Have Been The Coffee" sounds achingly sad, the sadness makes way for a positive wave of uplifting melody that gradually creeps in. There are also electro elements brought into the mix, sitting nicely alongside the classical strings and piano (its certainly seems like an organic blend, unlike some artists who attempt to fuse the two).

Unsurprisingly, given the pedigree of Kaada, many of these recordings sound a lot like film soundtracks "Unknown Destination" flits between a subversive distorted version of John Barry and a more jovial farce. The prominence of piano and the cinematic nature of this record will almost certainly lead to comparisons with Jonny Greenwood's excellent score to Phantom Thread (or maybe that's just because I've listened to both albums - a lot - in the past few weeks), and Kaada is certainly playing in a similar ball park, creating similarly beautiful pieces that slip in and out of darkness. However, Kaada's electronic slant does mean that he's playing in his own unique realm, one that few of his peers can touch.